I ordered the Breaded Dory Fish with 2 sides. We can choose our side dish from the menu and I love the flexibility. Baked potatoes and Coleslaw are my personal favourite. Breaded dory is crispy and the dishes were served warm.

Roasted Half Chicken for Hubby and I must say the portion is filling. I appreciate the restaurant is not stingy with the amount of coleslaw served and we enjoyed our dinner.

Our 12" Hawaiian Pizza - Free Pizza up-size from 8" to 12" exclusively for MOF members. :) The thin crust is nicely complimented with lots of ham toppings. I would give it extra points if there are extra pineapple toppings!

It was an enjoyable dining experience. Food portion is decent coupled with great taste. There are a lot of selection from the menu, from western, asian to desserts, worth trying and I'm sure we will be back soon.

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

I still recall the days when we brought Denver to Chinese Garden to admire the lantern displays. Over the years, we have stopped our visits due to the rising admission price and distance.

Learning that Gardens by the Bay is hosting its very own Mid-Autumn Festival celebration definitely thrills us! Apart from the beautiful lantern displays surrounding the garden, there are cultural performances and activities, fireworks and food stalls. Most importantly, admission is FREE!

Location Map of the lantern displays. Be prepared to spend some time here! :)

It was a breezy evening after the rain. I adore how the gentle glow from the lanterns warm up the garden. My personal favourite would probably be the dragon lantern at Dragonfly Lake.

Spotted the "House of Knowledge" from afar.

Masks lantern displays.

It was a pity that some of the constellation lanterns did not lit up during our walk. Probably it was due to the rainy weather earlier that causes the power shortage.

Other themes of the lantern displays include Jurassic Park, World of Fairy Tales, Birds & Insects Paradise and Local Cultural view.

The various stalls setup at the food street, (near the main stage area) were selling and promoting their delicious desserts and core dishes, attracting a lot of visitors to sample before making their purchases.

Many children were spotted holding their lanterns as families spent the beautiful evening together. The largest and most enchanting display that light up the garden every night would be the SUPERTREES!

The lantern displays will be in the Gardens till 22nd September 2013 (Sunday). Four more days to go to catch them LIVE in 'action'.

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Mid-Autumn Festival - Not only is it a day where we get to sit together as a family to taste the yummy-licious mooncakes while the children carry the lanterns, it is also a special day for us as Hubby and I celebrate our (lunar) Wedding Anniversary. :)

Going into our 11th year in a couple of days time, it feels GREAT to bring the children toGardens by the Bay, enjoying our night out and immerse in the festive season before the school reopens for Term 4.

Denver & Gladys taking their individual shot at the entrance's main floral display. The flower prints on Gladys' dressing definitely a perfect match for today's visiting.

Denver helped to take a nice photo of me too! :) Mommy is always very 'deprived' of photos as I'm always the one taking pictures.

That's my boy and girl!

Beautiful flowers blooming in the Flower Dome.

Seeing the pretty flowers, Gladys developed a sudden interest in photography. Hubby spent some time teaching our girl some basic photo-taking techniques before she takes complete 'ownership' of his phone and happily snapping away.

Dragonflies have landed on the flower bed as they become the main attraction of the floral display.

Which one do you like? Red, Yellow or Blue?

It's a MUST to take photos with the dragonflies before making our way out of the Flower Dome.

Not forgetting a Lovely Family Photo to commemorate our 11th Year Wedding Anniversary. :)

Friday, September 13, 2013

Denver and Gladys starting wearing glasses at a rather young age. This seems to be a rising trend in Singapore with more children hooking onto computers, mobile devices and TV programmes. While Denver had his first pair at Primary 3, Gladys started to develop long-sightedness at K2. From then on, it was a journey of choosing the right eyewear for our kiddos.

Within a year, we have changed 3 pair of glasses for our little girl. What was the problem? The spectacle frame keeps sliding off from her nose bridge. As a result, Gladys is not looking through the lens most of the time. Persistent nagging at our little girl to push up the frame does not help.

Special Thanks to Nanyang Optical, Denver and Gladys get to have their free eye-check and try out the Eyelet Junior eyewear! I love their tagline - "stable on your face" and am looking forward to see how this will solve our problem.

While waiting for the kids to complete their vision check, I was busy 'shopping' for their frames. :) The colour of Eyelet Junior are very vibrant. Whether it is hot pink, studious black, crystal blue or funky orange, there's definitely one that our kiddos will love. The design of the spectacles are pretty stylish too.

I love the light-weight of the frames and how the springy effect on the temple secures and fits nicely on Denver & Gladys' face. According to Adam (our friendly, experience optician from Nanyang Optical), Eyelet Junior is suitable for active children and their frames are constructed with a single piece of stainless steel without any joints or soldering. This is what makes the frame sturdy. It is also the world's first stitch-locked eyewear thatuses nylon-string to replace the conventional screw and hinges to secure the frame-front to the temples, giving the frames more flexibility and durability. Sounds really cool!

Denver has a preference for black and it wasn't too hard for him to select his desired choice. Gladys on the other hand had a harder time picking her glasses. She has outgrown her love for pink and struggling between more mature colours!

"Hmmm... I look cute in Red but cool in Black."

"Which one should I pick?".. Not able to make a final decision, she began to leave it to her "Eeny, meeny, miny, moe". :) Final verdict - Studious black!

Adam is very professional and patient with our children, spending time understanding their vision history before giving his suggestions and recommendations.

He also sat down with us explaining the benefits of Zeiss MyoVision lens which helps to reduce myopia progression by an average of 30%.

Myopia is where the image of a distant object is focused in front of the retina, resulting in blurred distance vision. This is mostly a result of the elongation of the eyeball. The conventional, flat-form lens corrects for central vision, but contributes to a deterioration of the peripheral image projection.

MyoVision corrects the central vision, but also moves the peripheral image onto, or in front of the retina. This helps to send a 'stop' signal to the eye to manage eye elongation and prevents deterioration.

According to Adam, children wearing MyoVision lens will notice their central vision will be clear but peripheral vision will be slightly blurred. This will actually guide and train the child to look through the lens from the center. We thought this is particularly helpful for Denver as he loves to read lying on his bed. Moving forward, this could be a good preventive measure and to promote better eyecare habits.

The children are looking forward to collect their new pair of glasses. More updates and review on how Eyelet Junior and MyoVision lens works out for Denver & Gladys.

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Butter Studio - A redefined home grown bakery which stands out within the neighbourhood along Jalan Besar. The main roads are lined up with shophouses, well known for its history, architecture and culture. Its a delight to see a new shop springing into action, adding more flavour to the area.

Inspired by home baked childhood favourites, Butter Studio's pastries are freshly baked in limited quantities daily, without the use of any preservatives or stabilizers.

The owner has spent a lot of time and effort decorating the shop to give it a nostalgic feel and look.

Fragrant scent from the freshly brewed coffee and pastries spurred us warmly as we enter. Care to try a sample of their fresh bakes?

Food tasting time! I love the way Butter Studio serve their pastries. Western cupcakes on a Chinese-style plate - A combination of the East and the West. :)

Our kiddos' face lit up as soon as they saw the lovely cupcakes and forgotten their table manners. Fastest fingers first as they grab the cupcakes of their choice! Its always easy to see if your children love their food from the look of their faces.

Personally, I appreciate cupcakes which are not overly-sweetening. Each bite of the cream and the butter-flavoured cake is well-balanced.

Their brownie is filled with nuts and I love its crunchiness. The chocolate is not too thick and overwhelming. A lovely dessert to go with a cup of coffee or tea.

While my hubby adore durians, I love lychee. :) A glass of cooling, refreshing Lychee Mint Tea is just what I need after savouring the pastries. The lychees compliments well with the mint tea, adding more texture, flavour and a bit of sweetness to the drink.

Home-made ice lemonade is a common favourite among adults and kids - especially if it is served in a jar.

More cupcakes!

More cakes!

Salted Caramel Nutella Tart - one of the best-seller in the shop.

Apart from specializing in their bakes, Butter Studio also hosts workshops and has live acoustic music every Friday night. If you are around the area and crave for some desserts after dinner, Butter Studio is another alternative, with a local touch, adding to the list.